


Sisterhood

by messier31



Category: Babblebrook (Web Series)
Genre: Fluff, Gen, Sister-Sister Relationship, Sisterhood, Unresolved Tension
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-02
Updated: 2020-06-02
Packaged: 2021-03-03 21:27:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,597
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24502345
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/messier31/pseuds/messier31
Summary: an evening with Belladonna and Evangeline.
Comments: 8
Kudos: 4





	Sisterhood

**Author's Note:**

  * For [MarvellousPinecone](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MarvellousPinecone/gifts).



> my dear pinecone, this one's for you! to our two sisters and to all the times they've shared, for better and for worse. some things never change. barely edited, written in one sitting, and basically plotless, i hope you enjoy it nonetheless.

Evangeline made the tarts; Belladonna brought a cherry wine, dark and soursweet. 

The pale moon was rising as Eva lit the tall, white candles, moving lightly around her home. Bella quickly made herself comfortable on one of the squishy, plush chairs, tucking her legs under her dark cloak. Reaching to the low table in the center of the room, she opened the wine and poured a glass each for her and her sister. 

A warm amber glow filled the cozy room as Evangeline settled alongside her sister. She watched as the younger witch contemplated the dark, mundane wine with cool regard, swirling her glass before drinking it in one long gulp. Her dark eyes, blackened further by the kohl she lined them with, glittered in the candlelight. She raised her empty glass in a cheeky toast to her sister. Evangeline smiled enigmatically, biting into a homemade lemon tart.

They sat in patient silence for some time, listening only to the song of the night around them. Summer was fading quickly, cool winds sweeping across the land and bringing a promise of fall, of pumpkins and cider and spice. 

Evangeline spoke first, finally breaking the quiet around them.

"Bridgette wrote to me," she started, pleased to see how quickly she captured Bella's full attention. It was no secret that her sister and the girl were close; if anything, Eva was simply happy to see Bella care about something-- _ someone _ \-- so deeply. 

"When? Why?" she asked sharply. "I did not know of that."

"Only to ask for a blessing for the inn as the seasons change. I believe she said there were fewer travelers once the weather cools; she and her family sought to procure a blessing to secure prosperity in the coming months."

Bella pouted, twirling the stem of her glass between her slender fingers. "She could have come to me for that," she muttered. "I could do it, easily. Why did she have to go to you?" 

Eva laughed lightly, trying to lighten the mood without hurting her sister's already-bruised pride. "I believe you're a bit well known for... other services, dear. Services of a much less benevolent nature than little blessings and such."

"That's true," Bella responded, tossing her hair haughtily. "I suppose my solution would have been something much more clever, though. Perhaps enchanting the floors so that nobody can leave once they’ve entered? That would certainly keep the rooms full and her family's pockets fuller."

Evangeline cracked a smile. 

"Or," Bella continued to muse, "I could hex all of the inns in the surrounding villages to have the lumpiest beds and creakiest floors, that would surely help their business. Or vanish all of their signs! Can't have any business if nobody knows where you are!" 

Eva shook her head, laughing. "You, Bella, are the absolute  _ worst _ ." 

Bella smiled back widely. "You think so?  _ Thank _ you, darling! That  _ is _ the highest praise."

She laughed, as did Evangeline. For a precious moment the walls between them seemed to fall, and the closeness to her sister that Eva so desperately sought seemed tangible once more.

Just as quickly their laughter quieted, and silence ruled once more.

~~~

The Nightshade Witch had been hard-pressed to visit her sister. It was with an admitted and stubborn reluctance that she found herself once more at Evangeline's home, cozy and golden and glowing with candlelight, smelling of sweet herbs and good intentions. 

Good intentions indeed. She had, truly, no idea what compelled her, time and time again, to heed her sister's summons. Perhaps a sort of guilt, for all the pain she had caused. As though tea parties and suppers could ever penance enough for what had passed between them.

But she was here nonetheless, looking at her sister, silvery and shimmering and beautiful. Everything she'd once wanted to be, and everything she'd once wanted to destroy. Yet it was not regret, nor sorrow, that filled her now. Merely a sense of need. There was no other way to describe it, except that she had to be there, for her own sake as much as her sister's. 

She remembered their old meetings, in the time before the heavy curtain of guilt and sorrow had parted them. When she would sit at Evangeline's side by the fire until the sun colored the East, planning adventures beyond her wildest dreams. They were young and powerful and had the world in the palm of their hands. Or so it seemed. Victories had come hard and fast, but the consequences of their failures were much slower to pass. The sourness of her cherry wine lingered in her mouth long after its sweetness had left her.

She swallowed, trying to rid her mouth of the taste. Instead she found the miraculous courage to speak. 

"Eva, do you remember the time when you were in that tree, trying to get the-- the-- those eggs, those peculiar little speckled eggs, and the two elderly villagers came up to me when I was keeping watch and asked what I was doing by their tree, and I had to lie and tell all these crazy stories while praying they wouldn't look up and spot you?"

~~~

The tree story-- Belladonna was telling the tree story. She'd forgotten all about it. 

She broke the heavy silence between them, asking of a time eons ago. Eva had been stuck in a tall evergreen tree, searching rather desperately for the eggshells of elusive whisperswallows. They were needed for a potion of invisibility, for this was before the time of enchanted rings and the like. Invisibility had been a prize to be claimed only after many months of work. She listened, the story bringing back warm memories, as her sister described trying to distract a curious group of locals while she crouched in the high branches above, hoping she would not be spotted. 

The air between them had thawed, and it was vibrant, flowing, alive once more. She could almost taste that southern spring air on her tongue, almost feel the bark beneath her bare feet, as Bella had talked far below and she'd reached for those precious eggs-- 

Belladonna broke off, a fleeting, childlike smile flashing across her face. Eva quirked her eyebrow, smiling internally. "What, Bella?" she asked.

"'Nothing," she replied, quickly regaining her signature steely glare and dry tone. "I do believe your little magic trick on those tarts has come into effect," she added. Indeed, when Eva reached to her cheek, she felt the distinct warmth of magical freckles, glowing cheerfully before disappearing like sparks into the great night. 

She smiled indulgently at her sister. "I couldn't resist," she laughed. "Bespeckled verbena brings out the sweet lemon so well. And, truly, I'd hoped you'd try one..."

Bella's eyes flicked to the plate of gorgeous, golden-and-yellow tarts, and she tossed her long, black hair. She did not take a tart. 

Evangeline only rolled her eyes, amused, at least, by her sister's unwavering stubbornness. Yes, some things never changed. And she had no doubts that Bella, before leaving, would slip at least one into the pocket of her cloak, to be savored during the trip home. A little bit of sweetness, a little bit of her, to carry home on the long journey through the forest. 

~~~

The moon was high and golden in the hazy summer sky. A flutter of wings on the windowsill told Belladonna that her sister's owl had returned from his nightly hunt. The crickets had grown quiet and the night air still. In the corner, a candle sputtered and finally died, the thin trail of smoke lost into the darkness outside. 

Across from her, Evangeline shifted in her seat, brushing a stray silvery-blonde hair from her pale face. 

"The forests are dark and dangerous this time of night," mused Belladonna. 

Evangeline looked up.

"That is, perhaps, why the witching hour is my favorite time to travel." she concluded, and looked up to meet her Evangeline's eyes.

Her sister smiled, perhaps a bit mournfully. Both witches rose, and Evangeline stepped forward involuntarily, moving as though to embrace her sister. Belladonna froze. Perhaps Evangeline had heard the sharp, surprised breath that had slipped from her lips, for she stopped, still near enough that Belladonna could smell the fragrant herbs that clung to her sister like a gentle perfume. She cursed herself inwardly, cursed her indecision, her own cowardice. That had been the gasp of a frightened rabbit, not any mighty wolf. The Nightshade Witch feared nobody, certainly not the embrace of her own gentle sister. 

But it meant so much more-- so much more.  _ Perhaps one day-- _

She pocketed a tart on her way out, sure Evangeline would not notice if one more was missing. A treat for later. Or maybe she would feed it to some sharp-toothed creature on her journey home. Only time would tell.

"I'll see you soon, Bella. Safe travels." her sister called at her retreating back. There was unspoken, pained affection in her words, as though her farewell had been washed, bleached, starched, and hung up to dry in the sun, colorless and shapeless. It was a mere shadow of the former closeness they had once shared, a closeness that had been worn away by time and loss. 

The Nightshade Witch risked a final glance over her shoulder. Behind her, the Willow Witch stood in her doorway, a warm glow spilling around her into the night's clear darkness. Her sister's face was in shadow, but Belladonna was sure that Evangeline watched over her, as she always had. As she always would, Belladonna conceded. Some things never changed.

**Author's Note:**

> marvellouspinecone, thank you for your lovely response to my comment, and i hope you liked this. it was interesting to try and show the distinct personalities of each witch in their respective POV's. to be honest it's been a while since i've actually watched some of the more plot-heavy Babblebrook videos, so i'm sort of hazy on some of the details, but i think i've captured the essence of Bella and Eva's relationship. there's some tension, some pain, but they still love each other anyways, as only sisters can. i love this little fandom and the friendships we've all built here to bits! 
> 
> xox messier 31


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